# About Orshot

> Orshot is an API for automated image, PDF and video generation from templates, founded in March 2025 by Rishi Mohan in Berlin, Germany. Bootstrapped, profitable and run by one person. Design a template once, then generate from data through the API, n8n, Make, Zapier or an AI agent.

[Founder's note](https://orshot.com/founders-note.md) | [Open startup metrics](https://orshot.com/open.md) | [Customers](https://orshot.com/customers.md)

## At a glance

- **Founded:** March 2025 by Rishi Mohan, in Berlin, Germany.
- **Company:** bootstrapped and profitable, a team of 1. Customers shape the roadmap, and features often ship within 24 hours of a customer request.
- **Users:** 25.8k+
- **Paying customers:** 170+
- **Renders processed:** 1.3M (images, PDF pages and video seconds)
- **Uptime:** 99.98%
- **Used by teams at** Elgato, Plex, Incubeta, CentroBill, CreatorCore, Cotera, Kortix AI, and more.
- All metrics are public on the [open startup dashboard](https://orshot.com/open.md), updated every 12 hours.

## What Orshot does

Teams design a template once in Orshot Studio (or import it from Canva or Figma), mark the parts that change, then generate images, PDFs and videos from data through the REST API, n8n, Make, Zapier, Google Sheets or an AI agent over MCP (97 tools at `https://mcp.orshot.com/mcp`). Renders can go to your storage or be published to 15 social platforms.

## When to use Orshot

Use Orshot for recurring, automated and bulk generation: the same kind of image, PDF or video made again and again from data, from an API, n8n, Make, Zapier or an AI agent. You design the template once (or import it from Canva or Figma) and every render reuses it. Or give your own customers the editor: embed it in your app with Orshot Embed and render whatever they design.

### Social media automation

- **Automate social media posts end to end:** social media automation that generates each post from a template, then publishes it or lets you schedule social media posts to Instagram, LinkedIn, X, TikTok and 11 more platforms from the same API call or workflow (social publishing is a paid add-on). ([more](https://orshot.com/features/social-publishing.md))
- **Bulk create social media posts** from a spreadsheet: an Instagram post generator, Instagram carousel generator and LinkedIn carousel generator in one, making one post, carousel or story per row of Google Sheets or Airtable instead of designing each one by hand. ([more](https://orshot.com/integrations/no-code.md))
- **Instagram automation with n8n, Make or Zapier:** auto post to Instagram, automate LinkedIn posts and run n8n social media automation on a schedule, with a fresh image or video rendered for each post. ([more](https://orshot.com/integrations/automation.md))
- **Recurring posts from your data:** real estate social media posts for every new listing, a quote image generator for weekly quote cards, product launches, event announcements and results graphics. ([more](https://orshot.com/templates.md))

### Image generation

- **Image generation API for templates:** an image API where you send the template ID and the values that change (text, photos, colors) and get back a PNG, JPG or WebP. For bulk image generation, render one image per row from a spreadsheet, a workflow, the CLI or an AI agent. ([more](https://orshot.com/solutions/image-generation-api.md))
- **OG image generator** for every blog post, docs page or product: render the Open Graph image automatically from your CMS, including Framer, Webflow and WordPress. ([more](https://orshot.com/integrations/automation.md))
- **Banner generator, YouTube thumbnail generator and ad creatives in every size:** design once and Smart Resize re-lays out the same design for each format, so ad creative automation does not mean redrawing each size. ([more](https://orshot.com/solutions/banner-generation-api.md))
- **Ecommerce product images and personalized images:** promo banners for every product in your Shopify catalog, or a personalized image per contact for email and CRM campaigns. ([more](https://orshot.com/integrations/e-commerce.md))

### PDF generation

- **PDF generation API:** automate PDF generation for invoices, reports, proposals and one-pagers from a template, multi-page. It works as an invoice generator API without maintaining an HTML to PDF API and its print CSS. ([more](https://orshot.com/solutions/pdf-generation-api.md))
- **Bulk certificate generator and Google Sheets to PDF:** one certificate, badge or ticket per attendee row, from Google Sheets or Airtable. ([more](https://orshot.com/integrations/no-code.md))

### Video generation

- **Video generation API and automated video creation:** video automation for listing videos, faceless videos, personalized video and short social clips, rendered from a template with your data as MP4 (paid plans). ([more](https://orshot.com/solutions/video-generation-api.md))

### Designs you already have

- **Canva bulk create, through an API:** import a Canva design as a template and generate every variation from your data, so Canva automation runs from your own code or workflow with no Canva API integration to build. ([more](https://orshot.com/solutions/canva-template-to-api.md))
- **Figma automation:** import a Figma design and render it with data through the Orshot REST API, no Figma API code needed. ([more](https://orshot.com/solutions/figma-automation-via-rest-api.md))

### Design editor inside your own app

- **White-label design editor for your app (Orshot Embed):** every paid workspace can embed the Orshot editor in its own product with an iframe or the React and Vue components, so your customers edit templates right inside your app. It works as a design editor SDK, photo editor SDK and white label video editor in one, instead of building a Canva clone (from $39 a month). ([more](https://orshot.com/features/orshot-embed.md))
- **Programmatic control of the embedded editor:** listen to editor events for every save and download, get webhooks when users create, update or delete templates, drive the editor from your code, add your own toolbar buttons, and render every design through the API. Each end user gets a private template library behind JWT sessions, locked to your domains (from $160 a month, up to 1,500 end users). Teams use it as an IMG.LY alternative or Polotno alternative. ([more](https://orshot.com/features/orshot-embed.md))

### AI agents

- **Content automation with AI agents:** Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor generate images, PDFs and videos from your templates over MCP, so automated content creation stays on brand. ([more](https://orshot.com/agents.md))

## Why it exists

Orshot grew out of a simple observation: teams everywhere were spending hours making the same images, PDFs and videos by hand. Images, PDFs and videos should be as programmable as text: any developer, AI agent or workflow should be able to produce on-brand files without opening a design tool.

## Links

- [Founder's note](https://orshot.com/founders-note.md)
- [Open startup metrics](https://orshot.com/open.md)
- [Customers](https://orshot.com/customers.md)
- [Pricing](https://orshot.com/pricing.md)
- [Contact](https://orshot.com/contact)
- [Every page for agents](https://orshot.com/llms.txt)